Tuesday, November 10, 2015

The White House endorsed legislation Tuesday that would
amend the 1964 Civil Rights Act to ban discrimination on the basis of
sexual orientation or gender identity, plunging into the next front in
the national battle over LGBT rights. Speaking to reporters, White House
Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the administration “has been
reviewing for several weeks” the bill. “It is now clear that the
administration strongly supports the equality act,” he said, adding it
would advance the civil rights of “millions of Americans.”

Earnest added the White House would “work to ensure that
the legislative process produces something that balances “the bedrock
principles of civil rights with the religious liberty that we hold dear
in this country.” Although there is little chance that this Congress
will approve the legislation — which was introduced in July by
Democratic Sens. Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Tammy Baldwin (Wis.) and Cory
Booker (N.J.) — President Obama’s support elevates to greater prominence
the question of whether lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender
Americans need greater legal safeguards.

The Human Rights Campaign reacts:

The unfortunate reality is that, while LGBT Americans can
legally get married, millions remain at risk of being fired or denied
services for who they are or who they love because the majority of
states still lack explicit, comprehensive non-discrimination
protections,” said HRC President Chad Griffin. “By endorsing the
Equality Act, the White House sent a strong message that it’s time to
put the politics of discrimination behind us once and for all. Now it’s
time for Congress to act. Everyone should be able to live free from fear
of discrimination and have a fair chance to earn a living and provide
for their families, including people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, and
transgender.”

Note that today’s move comes on the same day that President Obama’s Out Magazine “Ally Of The Year” cover story was issued.

Out Magazine has named President Obama its “Ally Of The Year” in their annual Out 100 issue. They write:

The 44th President of the United States is our Ally of
the Year—a president who came to office on a wave of euphoria, appeared
to lose momentum halfway through, and has since rallied, helping us
secure marriage equality, among other landmark initiatives that are
transforming our place in America.

This is the first time a sitting president has been
photographed for the cover of an LGBT title, a historic moment in
itself, and a statement on how much his administration has done to
advance a singularly volatile issue that tarnished the reputations of
both President Clinton and President Bush. It might have tarnished this
president, too, but for his late-hour conversion in 2012, which set the
stage for the extraordinary succession of events that led to this year’s
Supreme Court ruling, on June 26, making it unconstitutional to deny
same-sex couples the right to wed.

Many things led up to that decision—“decades of our
brothers and sisters fighting for recognition and equality” as the
president notes—but once his administration decided to join that fight
it created what people like to call a “transformative” moment. It helped
tip the balance, and it put our elected leader on the right side of
justice.

“True
seva, selfless service, is a phenomenon that happens when we are able to
follow our soul’s purpose. Many people still lack clarity as to what
their purpose truly is. This happens simply because the time has not yet
come for them to have this consciousness. But everything in this world
has its time. Until that moment arrives, I suggest that we dedicate
ourselves to seva, in whatever form that may be, until we are humble
enough to ask: ‘How may I be of help?’ ”

One
must learn how to do [meditation] properly. It’s not just about trying
to find a comfortable quiet corner to hide in. There is more to it than
that. It is about wisdom awareness, knowing, seeing clearly.